08/14/17 - Raleigh, North Carolina

What a week! I love this mission so much, these days are going by much too quickly! One of our wonderful office staff members left on vacation this week and she won't be back for a few months so we decided to go to lunch on Monday at the Cheesecake Factory to thank her for all she has done. It was a delightful memory and of course the Cheesecake Factory was amazing!! Some emergency situations came up in the mission so Elder Jones and I spent our preparation day driving across the mission to move some Elders around to different areas. We got back into Raleigh just in time for our lesson with the Borrerro family (the family that came back from Florida)! They are extremely prepared for the gospel! We taught them about the Book of Mormon and Jay, the father, had read the chapter we left with him and he even had a very strong spiritual experience with it! He shared that he cried as he read it because he felt it rekindling his childhood faith in Christ. He gave us a detailed summary of what he read and believes the book to be true. The following day we had to take care of another emergency situation with some missionaries so we spent a good majority of the day road tripping again! Upon our return, we met with Donald and taught him of the restoration. He loved it! He had many questions and really felt the Spirit as we testified, invited, and promised blessings. He even accepted a baptismal date and had a kneeling prayer with us, which he offered himself. Elder Jones and I commented afterward that something amazing is happening with our lessons. We are letting the Holy Ghost be the teacher. It's very easy to think that the Holy Ghost is a tool we as missionaries use to help us in the work, but the opposite is true. We are the tools that the Holy Ghost as the teacher may use to move the work forward. The latter and more appropriate pattern only happens when we let it. Elder Jones and I have been praying and fasting for the Holy Spirit to be with us more and it has been made manifest. Over and over and over again. What a sacred trust to have the constant companionship of the third member of the Godhead. He is the teacher and testator of all truth. After our dinner we knocked the night away and had a few fun experiences! We knocked into an insane asylum and had a worker come out and talk with us for a little while until he had to run inside and take care of the patients. We also knocked on a home that apparently was a church! The pastor came out and let us know he was right in the middle of his sermon and didn't have much time. We asked if we could meet with him some other day to share a message about living prophets, but he just rushed back inside to his Pentecostal service. Wednesday morning we did a little cleaning to get our apartment and car looking nice for an inspection we were to have the following day! We then had to take care of another situation so we spent some time driving on the road.. After that situation we drove down to Lake Wheeler and visited each of the three Congolese families we had taught last week. We spoke with a few of them and even met a new man who seemed pretty interested! After our Swahili lessons we returned to Raleigh and of course did some tracting! We didn't have a ton of time, but we set a goal, said a prayer, and went knocking! Although we couldn't catch anyone home at first, we kept at it and eventually found a new investigator. Thursday was another busy day and we started it off by visiting the Borrerro family again! They are so awesome. We decided to explain the restoration in depth and holy cow the Spirit was present in that room. Jay and Reuben both accepted a baptismal date for September 2nd! We gave them a new chapter to read and they offered us some lunch. While we were eating lunch Reuben was so anxious to read the Book of Mormon, he brought it to the table with him and read as he ate! After that spectacular lesson, we did some work in the mission office trying to get caught up for the week and then had to take a trip down to Dunn! We went down to pick up Elder Nadauld and after bringing him back to Raleigh with us, we had 15 minutes left before 9 so we went tracting! We decided to tract some mansions because we're determined to teach kings and rulers! Elder Nadauld enjoyed the night and we reflected on many mission memories with one another. The next morning we all woke up super early so that we could get Elder Nadauld to the airport on time! He got his luggage and everything taken care of and after we said goodbye to each other, we watched him go through security and off into the sunset of his mission. This mission is going to miss him for sure, he was a great strength to us and he accomplished many miracles! Elder Jones and I were swamped with office work to get done so we spent a little time doing that and then got a phone call to take care of another emergency situation! Haha it was comical at this point how many times we had been on the road in one week. But regardless, we dropped everything and went to take care of it! It consumed the rest of our day and even our entire night, but at least we were able to help President and get it done. Saturday was a splendid day! We ate breakfast with Mike and his son Preston and not only did they feed us pancakes, deer sausage, and grits, but we had a refreshing lesson! They had many questions, mostly about the Priesthood and the way the offices are organized, but we were able to relate it all back to the Book of Mormon and leave them with a strong invitation to read and pray. We told them it is great to learn about the church, but nothing we ever share will be personally meaningful until they know it is true. The evidence of that is found in the Book of Mormon and answers come as we read, ponder, and pray. Their hearts are good and their desires are pure. They expressed a few concerns, but as we sat there and did our best to ask inspired questions, they really opened up and shared their true concerns. We were witnesses of the Spirit at work. As they felt the powerful influence, they had the courage to open up and let us know how they were actually feeling. There was a rich feeling of love and peace as scriptures, stories, and testimonies were shared. Elder Jones and I were blessed to have another good lesson afterward with an investigator named Kevin. We answered some questions and concerns he has had about the church and he told us he's had them on his mind for a while. He didn't feel comfortable sharing them with us before, but he mentioned that something was different now. It was the Spirit! I'm telling you, the Spirit has been so abundantly involved in our teaching efforts lately. It is a miracle to watch him soften the hearts of our investigators! We met with President James for a few hours to discuss some things and then had lunch with him and Sister James! We also had lunch with their family that is in town! A few of their children are here as well as their grandchildren! It was great to meet them, they're wonderful people. We finished the day by visiting the Borrerro family again and teaching them the Gospel of Jesus Christ. They loved it! We really focused on repentance and baptism. Sunday was amazing. We got in the car yesterday morning and saw that we only had a few miles until empty! It was just enough gas to get to the church! We desperately didn't want to break the Sabbath so we contacted a member family we are close to and they offered to bring some gas to the church for us. They gave us a few gallons and it saved us!! Church was terrific despite the fact that many of our investigators who committed to come didn't in fact make it. We have faith for next week! We taught Matt after church, our Messianic Jewish investigator, and had a good lesson about the Book of Mormon. We then went to dinner and after dinner we had a mission president fireside in President James's home! It was powerful. We filled up the basement with investigators, less actives, and the missionaries who teach them. President James shared his remarks on the wonderful gift of the Holy Ghost and then we went around the room inviting each investigator to stand up and share their story. The Spirit flooded the room and many of us were in tears as some shared their desires to be baptized, others sharing their desires to come back to church. One particular investigator shared that he is done fighting the Spirit. He knows he needs to be baptized and he said he just wanted to fall to his knees and stop fighting the promptings. He commented that if President James had a bathtub upstairs, he would want to be baptized that instant! It was a powerful meeting and at its conclusion, President asked me to stand in front of everyone, bear my testimony, and offer the closing prayer. I had no idea what to say but as I began to testify of Christ, my mouth was filled and I felt the Spirit confirm the truths I was sharing. I testified of the potential of these people, of God's love for them, of the validity and power of the Book of Mormon, I even testified of the reality and divinity of the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I ended my testimony in tears and prayed through the entire prayer. I was overcome with love as I prayed for specific people there that were particularly struggling. The Spirit I felt last night filled my being. I so desperately seek its constant companionship and for that I plead with my Father every day on my knees that He will bestow that gift upon us. I know the church is true. Many that read this also know it is true. Heed the Spirit, have the courage to listen to its confirming witness, and you will find yourself on the true path to happiness. This is my testimony and I share it in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Putting his shoulder to the steering wheel,
Elder Shearer